File.



PATENTED OCT. 24, 1905..

L. C. MGNEAL.

PILE.

APPLIUATION FILED SEPT. 1, 1900.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIOE.

LUTHER C. MCNEAL, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- FOURTH 'IO HOWARD L. OSGOOD AND O. SOHUYLER DAVIS, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A FIRM.

FILE..

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 24, 1905.

Application iiled September 1, 1900. Serial No. 28,824.

.To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LUTHER C. MCNEAL, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Files, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in iiles or holders for retaining cards or other articles provided with apertures or engaging' shoulders and a locking mechanism for retaining said cards or other articles in position and permitting their insertion and removal, and has for its object the production of a device for the desired purpose that is particularly simple, strong, and durable; and to this end the invention consists in the combination, construction, and arrangement of the component parts of a file, as hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views, Figure l is a top view of a file embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section along the line 4: 4 of Fig. l. Fig. 8 is a view to the left on the line 3 3 in Fig. l, a part only of said View being shown with a portion of the front rest cut away to show construction. Figs. 4 and 5 are detail views of the operating' mechanism. Figs. 6 and 7 are detail views of a modied form of operating mechanism, and Figs. 8, 9, l0, 11, and l2 are detail views of the manner in which various forms of lockingbars engage the cards.

My improved file comprises in its organization a frame, tray, or holder A of any suitable form for receiving cards, leaves, or other articles H and a locking mechanism for retaining said cards or other articles in position and permitting their insertion and removal. The frame A is preferably rectangular. The articles I-I are arranged crosswise, usually between lengthwise sides or walls a of the frame A, and are formed with apertures I, which are provided with enlarged inner portions 2, oppositely-arranged engaging shoulder 3, (integral with the card in the forms shown,) and contracted outer portions di, extending from said inner portions through the adjacent edges of the cards or other articles. The card therefore has a slot extendinginward from its edge, at the inner end of which is a transverselywidened portion.

The locking mechanism of my improved file preferably consists of two parallel bars B, wider in one direction than another, each bar being pivoted at or near its ends and near one edge of the adjacent sides of the two bars. The pivots b of the bars B are supported in sockets f of plates F F', attached to the front and rear Walls a2 c3 of the frame A.

In the preferred form (shown in Figs. l to 5 and 8) the bars B are adapted to stand side by side in parallel planes or in such a position relatively to each other that they may pass through the narrow portions i of the slot in the card and may then be moved out of paral.-l lelism or may be set at any angle to each other or in line, so as to spread out in the widened portion 2 of thc slot in the card in order to lock it in the frame.

In Figs. l and 8 the bars B are pivoted at their lower edges, and their upper edges move to and from each other in order to engage in a slot in a card that may be fan-shaped, with the Wider portion uppermost, as shown in Fig. 8. In Fig. 9 the fan-shaped portion 12 of the slot I10 in the card H10 has its wider portion lowermost and the bars B1" are pivoted at their upper edges at om, so that when spread they engage the shoulders 13 and when closed together they can pass through the narrower portion d of said slot.

While the foregoing is the preferable form of the locking-bars, their constructions may be considerably varied without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Figs. 10, 11, and l2 represent different forms. In these forms of my invention the fiat bars B B10 of Figs. 1 to 9 have their equivalents in bars of other cross-sections. In Fig. 10 the bars B11 are square in cross-section, in Fig. Il the bars B12 are oval in cross-section, and in Fig. l2 the bars B13 are circular in cross-section. In each of these forms the bars are pivoted eccentricallymin Fig. 10 at tu, in Fig. l1 at 615, and in Fig. l2 at 1G-so as to permit in each case a spreading when the bars are turned, in order to engage the shoulders produced by the widened upper portions of the slots I11 I12 113 in the cards Hu, H12, and H13, respectively.

The means for actuating the locking-bars B may be of any desirable form of construction and as here illustrated consists of a reciprocating plate (l and a turning-handle E, with connections to said plate comprising a slot-and-pin device for moving said plate. Preferably I use a turning-handle E, having a journaled portion or shaft@ extending through one end of the front wall a2 of the frame A. Attached to the inner end of the handle E is a crank D, having a pin (Z, which moves in the transverse slot c of the plate C and imparts to said plate a reciprocating movement. Crank portions of the locking-bars B acting upon the non-adjacent edges of the bars (or a portion of the bars opposite to or away from the pivoted edge-in other words, eccentric to the pivots b) engage the diverging portions of the slot c'. The slot c', Fig's. 4 and 5, has a divided and diverging' upper part which bounds on two sides a downwardly-directed wedge fo in the plate C, lying between the diverging portions of the slot. By turning' the handle E in one direction the slotted plate C will be raised, and by turning it in the opposite direction said plate will be lowered and cause the bars B to rock or turn on their pivots b and into the positions necessary to retain or release the cards or other articles having suitable apertures.

In some of the forms shown the non-adjacent longitudinal edges of the bars engage the shoulders of the cards. In the forms shown in Figs. 11 and l2 non-adjacent longitudinal portions of the bars engage the shoulders of the cards.

The support F at the front t2 of the frame A has sockets f for holding the pivotsb of the locking-bars B and is also provided with guides j, in which the plate C moves, as shown. The plate F is preferably bent and forms the ways or guides f and is provided with a stop or stops f3", resting in arecess f2 in the edge of the sliding plate C, which may limit the movement of said last-mentioned plate. The sliding plate C strikes the stop or stops f3" when it reaches its highest position when lifted either by the movement of the crank pin Z or by the action of the springs f3.

Although the successful operation of my improved iile does notdepend upon the use of springs, it is sometimes desirable to use them. In Figs. 6 andT springs f3 are shown contained in recesses f, each bearing against the shoulders c2 of the plate C10 at one end and at the other end against a suitable stationary projection, such as the stop f3" on the plate F.

In Figs. 6, 7, and 9 is shown one form of my invention. rIhe supporting-plate F10 has the ways or guides fu, in which the operating-plate Cwslides.

verse slot @1 and has recesses or notches f2 1n its side edges, and a projection or stop fdo on the plate F10 rests 1n each recess or notch The plate C10 has a transf2, so as to limit the movement of the sliding plate in one direction. The upper end of the recess or notch forms a lug c2. coiled spring]E3 rests on the projection f3 and presses against the lug c2, tending to lift the plate C10. 'Ihus far this form of my denvice is capable of application to the same locking bars B shown in Figs. l and In Fig. 9 the locking-bars are pivoted at bw to the frame at their upper edges, and their lower edges rock toward and away from each other. In order to accommodate the sliding' plate to this movement of the locking-bars, the slot d of Figs. 3, 4, and may be reversed; but it is an equivalent to form the downwardly-diverging slots c11 in the plate and to act upon the ends of the crank portions bu of the bars B10. Spring mechanism of the same kind is obviously applicable to the mechanism shown in Figs. l to 5 to press the plate C downward in order to set the bars B in locking relation to the cards. The action of said springswill cause the plate C10 to normally hold the bars B10 in position for retaining' the cards.

Gr represents a follower-block of the form in common use. It is movable lengthwise of and has a central aperture g to receive the rods B. It may be held in adjusted position by any suitable means; but such means form no part of my present invention.

The construction and operation of my improved tile will now be readily understood upon reference to the foregoing description. It will also be noted that the exact construction and arrangement of the component part may be more or less varied as indicated herein, and consequentlyIdo not limitmyself to such exact construction and arrangement.

I'V hat I claim is* l. In a file, the combination with a tray, of locking-bars extending lengthwise ofthe tray, a vertically-movable plate arranged substantially at right angles to said bars for operating them and spring mechanism for moving the plate to hold the bars in locking engagement with cards in the tray, substantially as described.

2. In a tile, a frame, a sliding plate, two locking-bars each having' a crank connection to said plate, means for operating' said plate, and spring mechanism for holding' them normally in the position to set the bars in locking engagement with cards in the frame, substantially as described.

LUTHER C. MCNEAL.

lVitnesses:

GERTRUDE C. BLACKALL, F. BrssELL.

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